Topping Off Ceremony Celebrates Completion of First Phase of Construction

It might be cold out in Lenox and Stockbridge, but work on four new Tanglewood Music Center and Tanglewood Learning Institute buildings at the BSO’s history summer home in the Berkshires has been moving along.

The new building complex will support the performances and rehearsal activities of the BSO’s prestigious summer music academy, the Tanglewood Music Center, and serve as the home of the new Tanglewood Learning Institute.

Since the groundbreaking on this project last August, crews have been laying foundations and completing the basic structures of all four buildings. More than 275 tons of structural steel have been erected by crews that have worked more than 23,000 total man hours during months where the temperature averaged 25 degrees Fahrenheit.

To celebrate completion of this first phase of the construction a ceremonial topping off, where the final beam is placed atop the new structure, was held at the construction site on February 12. The steel beam was painted white and signed by the construction team before being placed on top of the walkway connecting the buildings. Members of construction manager Consigli Construction Co., Inc.’s management and crew, representatives from architectural firm William Rawn Associates, landscape architectural firm Reed Hilderbrand, and Skanska construction company, as well as BSO management and Board members including Eunice and Julian Cohen Managing Director Mark Volpe, Board Chair Susan Paine, and Trustee and Chair of the TMC/TLI Initiative Committee Joyce Linde, all came to watch and celebrate the placement of the last beam.

In her remarks, Linde declared, “This occasion and these new buildings reflect the ever-present commitment to the excellence of the BSO,” and thanked members of the construction team assembled for the ceremony. “Each of you has played a part in ensuring that the BSO, one of the world leaders in culture and music, will continue to be innovative in how we connect with audiences and musicians.”

“Every time I come out here, I get a real buzz,” Volpe added. “It’s amazing how quickly this all comes together.”

The new TMC/TLI buildings are planned to open at the start of the 2019 Tanglewood season.

The donor-funded Tanglewood Forever campaign, which continues through August 31, 2019, has surpassed its $64 million goal, raising $70 million as of July 8, 2019. Fundraising efforts—also in support of the new year-round programming opportunities made possible by Tanglewood’s first-ever four-season venue, the Linde Center—will continue past Tanglewood forever campaign completion.

As the new studios at the Linde Center for Music and Learning are tuned and acoustically calibrated, the structures at the Ozawa Gate continue to take shape.

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You can help the BSO ensure that Tanglewood remains vibrant and unique among summer festivals by supporting Tanglewood Forever. Donate online now, or contact the BSO Development Office at 617-638-9267 or friendsoftanglewood@bso.org for more information.